Mystery Santa's gift sparks new tradition in Wichita Falls

The Podschun family, which includes parents Kate and Joerg and Mina, 12, Nico, 5, and Luke, now 7 months, received a Christmas gift from a stranger two days before Christmas. A man handed Kate $50 as she shopped at Target. They thank the man, whose identity is unknown, for his generosity and hope to continue his spirit of giving.

CONTRIBUTED PHOTO/Angi Ruby Photography

The Podschun family, which includes parents Kate and Joerg and Mina, 12, right; Nico, 5, left; and Luke, now 7 months, received a Christmas gift from a stranger two days before Christmas. A man handed Kate $50 as she shopped at Target. They thank the man, whose identity is unknown, for his generosity and hope to continue his spirit of giving.

Courtesy Angi Ruby Photography

WICHITA FALLS — Kate Podschun doesn’t know who the man is, but she knows he changed her family’s Christmas.

A surprising gesture by a stranger put the Podschuns in the giving spirit, and Podschun believes the unexpected gift sparked a new Christmas tradition for her own family.

She was shopping Dec. 23 at Target with her daughter Mina, 12, and son Luke, 7 months, wrapping up some last-minute Christmas details.

The family, which also includes Podschun’s husband, Joerg, and their son Nico, 5, had received several holiday invitations and still had some gifts to buy for the friends they’d be seeing.

Caught in the pre-Christmas hustle and bustle, Podschun was just leaving the holiday section of the store when a man approached her, Mina and Luke.

“It was a little old man who just jumped in front of me, really enthusiastic, and started talking to the baby and making him smile,” she said.

The man told her “Merry Christmas” and handed her something.

She thanked him, thinking it was maybe a flier for a church service. She wished him a Merry Christmas and kept going.

A few aisles away, she stopped to set something down and for the first time looked at what the man had handed her. She couldn’t believe what the paper held.

“It was a $50 bill,” she said. She was stunned at the gift, and couldn’t help the tears the gesture brought to her eyes.

“I wanted to turn around and tell him ‘Thank you,’” she said. She thought she caught a glimpse of the man — and thinks he might have been giving a gift to someone else — but was never able to find him again to tell him how much she appreciated it.

She doesn’t know his name, how many people he surprised with gifts or how much money he gave that day, but she wants him to know he made a difference. She was curious about whether others in the community had similar stories about this man’s generosity.

The fact that someone would just give a gift like that, no questions asked, was humbling.

“He doesn’t know my story at all, and he did what he could — and it’s awesome,” Podschun said. “I know $50 goes a long way in our family.”

The gift still sits under the family’s Christmas tree, awaiting their decision on where it will go next.

Podschun knows they could use it on everyday expenses, but they want it to mean more than that.

“I’d rather pay it forward because that’s so special,” she said.

The gift came as a reminder to the family about what the season is all about and that giving is a vital part of the Christmas spirit.

Even if they can offer a similar gift to just one person at a time, Podschun hopes to carry on the generosity. Knowing someone cares like this man did gave this past Christmas an extra twinkle for the family.

“I just really appreciate the gesture. He put something in us,” she said. “We realize that we should be giving more. We’re just going to keep on doing what he did.”